Benchmade 720 Pardue

Reviewed 01/16/2010 by jimbo

-Price Paid: N/A
-Used for Other
-Owned for Greater than 1 year

Comments:

this was my very first benchmade, and ATS-34 bought at a gunshow over 12 years ago. little did i know that when i bought this compulsivly it would lead me to buy over 40 other benchmades. this one has become a classic, prices seem to be on the rise for them in the resale market. as usual with benchmade products build quality is excellent. benchmades ais lock is one of the best locking systems in the industry. the only grip i have is that it is a little on the thick side for every day carry.

Reviewed 12/22/2009 by Sean

-Price Paid: N/A
-Used for Every Day Carry
-Owned for Greater than 1 year

Comments:

I have owned my 720 for at least six years and have used it for daily carry almost every day since purchase. It is my workhorse knife and has served incredibly well. Mine is a 154CM blade, Black anodized aluminum handle with the Benchmade logo in white. Tip up carry only, but reversible clip. I agree almost completely with Scott's review, but I will highlight my own key points. I bought this knife for it's size and form. It fits my reasonably large hands almost perfectly both for delicate tasks and for aggressive ones. The blade shape is very usable with the tip and the curved portion getting the brunt of my use. The body is very durable. I have used it on many occasions as a hammer or other blunt instrument. It is a little marred after years of abuse, but the finish has held up far better than many of my flashlights which claim to be type III. The only place it is very visibly worn is the clip where the paint has clearly been buffed off by pocket carry. It sits very comfortably in my pocket,despite it's size and weight. It is reasonably thin and well contoured. The aluminum also warms to body temperature pretty quickly (something I notice). It is, as Scott said, too heavy for lighter dress pants. The blade has been very durable. I have not been afraid to use this knife so the blade has seen it's share of abuse (hacking, prying, screwing, etc...). (just last night I used it to trim a wooden window frame. It hit shards of imbedded glass or the metal retainers and is unharmed) I have only once managed to chip the blade and that was a very small chip towards the tip (the 720 is not meant as a screw driver for very small and stuck computer case screws). I sharpen with a Spyderco Sharp Maker and the knife holds it's edge well. I too have shaved with it in a pinch. The axis lock is still butter smooth despite my rather infrequent applications of white lightning. It is, however a little tricky to clean (one of very few complaints). The blade has almost no side to side movement even after thousands of times flipping it open for fun, putting a lot of lateral force on the blade. I have never had to disassemble or tighten the screws and yet it still maintains good movement and rigidity. I could nit pick tiny differences in design I might make, but they are nearly insignificant in the scheme of things. I love this knife and wish it was still in production. It would be perfect if there were a 3/4 size clone to use for dress carry. I wouldn't have need of any other knives.

Reviewed 12/07/2009 by Scott

-Price Paid: N/A
-Used for Every Day Carry
-Owned for Greater than 1 year

Comments:

I have owned this knife and carried it for more than 9 years. The Axis lock intrigued me right away. I like the ambidextrous features (I am right handed), the very solid lockup, and the ease of use. The knife has a 3.25" plain-edge blade made of ATS-34 steel. From what I have read online, it is almost the same as 154CM, but it is supposed to be able to hold a better luster (or something like that). Mine is the version with the aluminum handle; it was also offered with a G-10 handle. I carry it tip-down and that's how it came from the factory. This is one of the early 720s, which could be configured for tip-up or tip-down carry. I believe the later ones allowed only tip-up carry, but the clip was reversible to either side. The knife was offered with some graphics options (red, white, and blue, black with white butterfly, etc.) but mine is plain, black, anodized aluminum. I believe the knife does not have a type 3 hard anodized finish as mine has scratched over the years from pocket carry.
I like:
The features that drew me to the knife are the Axis lock, the ergonomics and how it fit my hand, the "just right" size of the blade, and the very solid feel of the aluminum handle. The knife is very smooth to open and close, compared to many of the other knives I had looked at. It is heavy at 4.3oz, but it just feels so solid. The blade uses a bowie style blade (I'd probably prefer a drop point, but I don't pry with my knives anyways) with a partial flat grind and a slight recurve. I like how the slight recurve aids in some types of cuts. Some non-aggressive jimping allows for a little better grip on the index finger and on the back of the handle and blade. The jimping is just ok. I think the balance of this knife is very good. It balances just behind the pivot. The smooth Al handle means that it will not tear up your pant's pockets.
I sharpen with a Lansky sharpener and I use 20 degrees per side. I find that edge retention is good. Resistance to blade chipping is very good. I don't baton with it nor do I attempt to cut through nails (or other abuse). On two occasions I have watched friends drop my knife onto bare concrete. One of those falls was from chest height and had the knife landing directly on the tip. There was dulling to the point, but no chipping. I promptly asked to have my knife back.
I dislike:
Not much! I am being picky here... For its size, this knife is a bit heavy. After all my use and carrying, I would say that the weight is only a minor concern. The weight is never noticeable in jeans. However, when wearing dress pants, the knife is too heavy. It is not a great dress knife. That's the price you pay for a very solid feel. If I had my choice, I would prefer a drop point rather than a bowie style point. I don't abuse this knife or pry with it, but a drop point would give me a little more tip strength and piece of mind (mainly for when my friends ask to see my knife). On the plus side, the bowie style tip allows for easy piercing when opening packages. The G-10 version is very attractive for the added traction the scales would offer. This knife is a bit smooth in the hand.
This knife has been discontinued for many years. However, if you want a very solid feeling knife with a bowie tip that is great for stab-type cuts, this is a great option. I'm sure this can still be found on auctions and I have seen it at gun shows ($90-175 at the last show, Nov '09). I think retail for my version was about $155 when it was in production. I paid $105.
Overall, I really like this knife. I am a tough critic. The main drawbacks are weight (it isn't ideal for a dress knife), smooth grip surface, and ultimate tip strength.

Reviewed 09/04/2009 by jon

-Price Paid: N/A
-Used for Outdoor/Survival
-Owned for Greater than 1 year

Comments:

I've had a 72X for about ten years now, it's wear resistance is great, the blade shape lends itself to utility quite well.

I've had two of them one in ATS-34, the other in 154CM, both steels have great heat treatment.

The steel holds a razor sharp edge well enough for me to shave with a couple times.

It is comprised of steel liners with either G-10 or aluminum handles, uses T-6 and T-10 Torx bits for easy breakdown.

Some say that Omega springs used by Benchmade are the weak point, I disagree, I have never in 10 years of owning several Benchmade knives ever had an Omega spring break.

This pocket knife is worth every penny I paid .